Paging relates to simplex messaging services. In other words, simplex calls, hereinafter referred to as pages, are made to specified subscribers of the service. When a subscriber unit, such as a pager, receives a page, the subscriber is alerted. The pages may carry messages, or they may simply communicate the fact that the subscriber is being paged. Generally speaking, the service is considered a simplex service because communication travels in one direction only, from the page originator to the subscriber.
Many paging systems are in current use. Typical paging services use RF communications to deliver pages to pagers. Hence, pagers need not be anchored to a particular location and may be carried with subscribers. Since pagers only receive communication, they do not require transmitters or signal transmission capabilities. As a result, pagers are typically small, low-power, light weight, readily portable, and inexpensive units.
Conventional paging systems experience a problem related to range limitations. A paging system works only when its pagers reside within the area that can be reached by the system's transmitters. When subscribers travel outside this area, their pagers cannot receive calls. Another aspect of this problem is a limitation on paging capacity. As an area of coverage increases to better serve subscriber needs, the population of pagers likewise increases. As the population of pagers increases, the number of data communications increase. Thus, as the coverage area increases a point of diminishing returns can be reached. The number of data communications can become so great that an unacceptable delay in the delivery of calls is experienced. Moreover, conventional paging systems typically deliver pages only to those pagers that are specifically designed to be compatible with the paging system's RF communication parameters. Thus, economies of scale resulting from combining the capacities of independent paging systems are difficult to achieve.
Accordingly, a need exists for a superstructure which accepts pages from page originators and then routes the pages to appropriate independent paging sub-systems for delivery of the pages.